


Leave a message at the beep

by lunasenzanotte



Series: Drabbles [8]
Category: Football RPF
Genre: M/M, Prompt Fill, Relationship Issues, Relationship(s), Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-09
Updated: 2018-02-09
Packaged: 2019-03-16 02:00:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 612
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13626195
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lunasenzanotte/pseuds/lunasenzanotte
Summary: The one call Claudio should have answered.





	Leave a message at the beep

**Author's Note:**

> A fill for a prompt "one missed call".

Claudio wakes up late.

He’s on the couch, the TV is still playing. He must have passed out there, which, given how angry he was, is a small miracle.

The argument they had with Paulo is slowly coming back to him, and in the daylight it seems even nastier than before. Claudio can’t quite remember all the things he said to Paulo, but he does recall Paulo’s hurt expression, and the way he banged the door behind him, the way he usually does when he’s angry, only to come back a few hours later.

But now it’s past nine and Paulo isn’t there. Claudio can’t remember how long Paulo managed to sulk last time they argued, but he supposed it was about a day before he turned up. Claudio is already used to these games.

Then he looks at his phone and his heart lurches. _One missed call._ Paulo called him at 2:36 AM.

He presses the button without even thinking about it. He’s too worried at this point to play offended anymore. Calling isn’t a part of those games. Anything could have happened, and even if that call was meant to be just an apology, it’s something he should have never missed.

The call goes straight into voicemail.

Claudio curses, throwing the phone on the table after making sure it’s on loud, just in case Paulo decided to call again. Then he goes to the bedroom and puts some clothes on. He returns to the still silent phone, slips it in his pocket and grabs the car keys.

 

*

 

The bar is empty, save for the bartender polishing some glasses. Claudio walks up to him, gives him Paulo’s brief description, asks if he saw him there last night.

The bartender looks mightily unimpressed.

“I see many people here. All of them look pretty much the same when they’re drunk.”

Claudio figures out that his describing abilities are rather poor, so he fishes out his phone and finds one decent picture of Paulo before practically shoving the phone in the bartender’s face.

“Oh,” the guy says. “This one. Yeah, I remember that one. I asked for his ID before I poured him a drink. Kinda awkward. So you’re the jerk he was trying to call?”

Claudio closes his eyes briefly. “Yeah,” he admits then. “Do you know where he went then?”

He gets another incredulous, slightly judging stare. “No, man, I don’t,” the bartender says and puts the last glass on the shelf. “He called someone else, and luckily that guy picked him up and practically carried him out of here. Also paid his bill, which is the only thing that interested me.”

He doesn’t need to say anything else. Claudio already knows where to go.

 

*

 

He rings the bell and waits. It takes a couple minutes and more angry ringing for the door to open. 

The cause of his argument with Paulo is standing right in front of him, hair disheveled more than usual, but the same stoic expression on his face that makes Claudio want to punch him.

“What do you want?” he asks calmly, and there is indeed nothing for Claudio to want or demand here.

He looks over Federico’s shoulder.

Paulo is standing there, wearing a T-shirt that is definitely not his, looking sick and guilty and on the verge of tears. He’s trying to say something, but nothing needs to be explained here.

Claudio turns around without a word and walks out.

He can’t blame any of them. He tied a big bow on Paulo and threw him at Federico, and Federico took the present gratefully. He’s brought this upon himself. 

He should have answered that call.

 


End file.
